The Sanitary Evolution of LondonJephson, Henry (Henry Lorenzo)
History
The Sanitary Evolution of London
Jephson, Henry (Henry Lorenzo)
Public health -- England -- London
Under the Regulations, whenever the Vestry deemed it desirable to put
them in force in respect to any house let in lodgings or occupied by
members of more than one family, the number of persons allowed to live
in that house was fixed on a basis of 300 cubic feet of air for each
adult for sleeping, or 350 for living and sleeping, and the owner had
to reduce the number of lodgers to the number so fixed on receiving
notice to that effect.
The Regulations further directed that--
"The owner of such house shall cause the walls and ceilings of every
room, and of the staircase and passages, and yards of such house to be
well and sufficiently coloured or limewashed, or otherwise thoroughly
cleansed once (at least) in every year.
"He shall cause every room and the passages to be ventilated.
"He shall provide such accommodation for washing, and such a supply
of water for the use of the lodgers as shall be satisfactory to the
Vestry's Officers;" and sundry and numerous minor directions.
The Medical Officer of Health (Chelsea), after the first year's work,
reported that the number of houses in the parish inhabited by two or
more families was very great, and in many cases their condition was
deplorable, and it was found necessary to embrace whole streets as well
as courts and alleys in the registration.
By 1869 the registration in Chelsea had been completed, and in 1870 the
Medical Officer of Health wrote: "I have seen no reason to alter my
opinion of the beneficial action of the measure by which we have been
able to bring under direct and constant supervision the majority of the
houses occupied by the poorer classes in this parish...."
The most satisfactory results followed also in Hackney.
Its Medical Officer of Health reported in 1867 that nearly 5,000 houses
had been measured and examined, and in a large proportion of cases the
numbers of persons allowed to inhabit them had been fixed. And as to
the result of the enforcement of the Regulations, he wrote (1869): "A
very large number of families now occupy two rooms who formerly lived
and slept in one. The gain in health and morality has therefore been
considerable."
Poplar was another of the District Boards which made and enforced the
Regulations. The Medical Officer of Health for the north part of the
District reported (1868):--
"Extensive improvements have been already effected, but the work must
still be systematically continued, for even when every house in the
district has been put into good sanitary state (which is far from being
the case as yet), it will be necessary to maintain a constant and
watchful system of re-inspection to ensure their being kept in order.
"Of the 1,610 houses inspected nearly all required more or less
sanitary improvement, and 630 were registered as containing more than
one family, and therefore coming under the Board's regulations as to
registration."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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